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Gi Review: Conca Joker

Conca “Our goal is to provide the best quality gi possible at the lowest cost. We strongly believe that everyone should be able to acquire the best quality gi to represent themselves and their schools while on the mat.”

The Joker Lightweight Gi by Conca

The gi is extremely well made. I think it will stand up to tons of abuse. It has many extras and it is fun and colorful. The A2 is cut stocky and if you are on the leaner side I’d recommend you go down a size. The gi costs $169.00. Conca currently is selling The Joker through Emguarda BJJ in Upland CA, Ralph Gracie BJJ in Chino CA and Teixeira Garcia BJJ in Covina CA. If you aren’t in SoCal you can message them at Concaquality@yahoo.com or find them on Facebook www.facebook.com/concafightwear

Style The Conca Joker is a white gi with colorful, what I like to think of as Mardi Gras colors. My teammate referred to the gi as my Miami Dolphins gi. Truth be told the color scheme was inspired by DC Comic’s Joker.

Jacket The jacket is made from the lighter 450gram pearl weave. It is quadruple stitched with purple contrast stitching and piping. The sleeve patches are embroidered and the chest patch is a woven label. There is reinforced stitching on critical seams. The manufacture claims the gi is 100% pre-shrunk but my brutal regimen proved there was still some shrinking to do.

I wash (warm) and dry (medium) my gis. I train 3x a week and sometimes pick up extra classes on the weekends. On the minimum I wore, washed and dried this gi 15 times but the figure is probable closer to 20.

Conca Joker Measurements After 20 Wash and Dries

Pants

Jacket

Initial

Wash & Dry

Initial

Wash & Dry

Waist

22 3/4

21 1/2

Wingspan

65

60 1/2

Inseam

30

28

Chest

23 3/4

23 3/4

Length

40 7/8

38 1/4

Length

31

30

Cuff

8 3/4

8 3/4

Cuff

7

6 1/2

With that being said this is a generous A2. With all the washing and shrinking the gi was still large on me. I’m 5’8” and 155. It’s made for a stocker build.

CollarThe gi has an EVA foam padded collar. A foam collar is advantages because your gi dries much quicker and is much less likely to harbor bacteria or grow mold. The size of the collar is too much collar for my taste. From time to time, I would notice something at the back of my neck like a stiff shirt collar. Each to their own, I know many people who search out a big collar.

Pants The pants are 12 oz rip stop. They use a bungee cord drawstring and a 6-point loop system. Pants are sewn with purple contrast stitching like the jacket. The gusset is pearl weave and the knees are reinforced with pearl weave kneepads. See the picture of the pants inside out. This gi was the first I’d seen with a large back butt seam patch. Another great advance is the uneven rise to the pants. The back of the pants rise a good inch and a half above the front. This means my butt will be covered and I don’t have to look like Urkel to get that coverage.

TapeThe inside collar and cuffs are finished with a bright pink/turquoise/orange satin tape. The long seam that runs from mid chest down the arms is sealed with a white satin tape. This is the first time I’ve seen this feature.

The gi comes in a ripstop cinch bag / backpack emblazoned with a picture of the Joker. I had mine hand delivered to my door so I can’t speak to the speed of delivery but based on the feedback left on Facebook many people are pleased.